#Festival: Inaugral Dublin Sci-Fi Film Festival announces winners

The inaugural Dublin Sci-Fi Film Festival drew to a close on Sunday evening after a remarkable weekend of Sci-Fi and Fantasy cinema in Smithfield featuring Irish Premieres, International shorts and restored classics.

We were overwhelmed by the positive response from audiences this weekend. There has been a huge enthusiasm for the Festival and we are thrilled to see such an interest in a dedicated Science Fiction event in the capital. We are honoured by the energy and attendances as well as the support from film distributors, media, funders, Smithfield businesses and in particular our partners, the Light House CinemaLight House Cinema is a specialist independent cinema in Smithfield, Dublin. Their eclectic schedule includes feature films, shorts, classics, foreign language ... More and Generator Hostel. I am also very grateful to our jury who have dedicated their time to the programme; the winners here are all deserving. DSFFF will return next year with an expanded programme and we look forward to welcoming feedback over the coming months.David Desmond – Festival Director

Feature Film Winner

Best Feature – The Untamed, directed by Amat Escalante (Arrow Films)

The feature jury included award-winning director Bob Gallagher, senior film programmer at Cork Film Festival Don O’Mahony and film journalist and founder of the Scannain, Niall Murphy.

Commenting on the selection on behalf of the jury Don O’Mahony said

By focusing through the prism of the mysterious and the unknown Escalante’s genre b(l)ending film has both the power to surprise and to make us consider notions of masculinity and sexuality in a startlingly original fashion.Don O’Mahony – Feature Film Jury Member

Short Film Winners

Best Sci-Fi Short – Animal, directed by Jules Janaud and Fabrice Le Nézet, of FullDawa Films

Best Fantasy Short – Behind, directed by Ángel Gómez Hernández

The shorts jury comprised of Luke Dunne, film journalist and founder of the website Film In Dublin, Eibh Collins, the short film programmer at Galway Film Fleadh, and filmmaker Conor Maloney of Cashmere Media.

Animalis sci-fi that presents a world that feels lived in, real and easy to connect to. The effects are impressive but the character work shines through too, always a recipe for the best science fiction.

Behind is a horror that will endure in the memory, brimming with confident filmmaking. Like all good horror, it takes the deeper fears we try to bury in our minds and personifies it on screen and it’s all the more unsettling for it. Luke Dunne – Short Film Jury Member

The inaugural Dublin Sci-Fi Film Festival took place in Smithfield in the Light House Cinema and Generator Hostel Dublin from 5th-7th May.

The 2017 programme featured Irish premieres of The Winter Soldier (from Blue Valentine screenwriter, Joey Curtis), The Untamed (Winner of the Venice Film Festival Silver Lion) and Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex; indie gems such as She’s Allergic to Cats and Embers; a range of international shorts and Sci-Fi classics such as Barbarella, The Forbidden Planet and a very special 30th anniversary screening of The Running Man.

About The Author

Founder and Managing Editor of Scannain. Head of Business Affairs at Treasure Entertainment.
If found please return to a cinema. Always willing to lend a hand to an Irish film, actor or director in need.